Phil 371 Essay 2 2015

Your essay should not have your name on it, just
your student number.

Essays (50% of the marks for this course) are due at the beginning
of class, Apr. 2.

Essays should not be longer that 10 pages,
typed, double spaced, (3,000 words). You should consult sources other than the
textbook: for pointers, see the references in the textbook. The Encylopedia
of Cognitive Science the MIT Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science (both
in reference at Porter Library) are good places to start. Also consult the books on reserve for Phil 371 at the Porter Library. Indicate your sources.
Include a word count. You can use any reference style you like, but indicate
all your sources.

The penalty for late essays is 10%: if you hand
it in after Apr. 2, you lose 10%. Final deadline for acceptance is 4 p.m on April 9, under my door in HH 368. Serious documented illness and family emergency are legitimate reasons for exceptions, but not work load or travel plans.

The penalty
for plagiarism (passing another person's work off as your own) is a course grade
of F and referral to the Associate Dean.

1. Relevance: pose and try to answer an important question
concerning intelligence.

2. Research: use resources beyond the textbook and class readings.

3. Writing: write intelligibly.

4. Argument: make a compelling case for the
answer you prefer, and consider alternative answers. Essays will
be graded on the quality of the argument, not on the particular
conclusion you reach.

The format does not matter, but make sure that
you indicate all your sources, including Web sites. This is a
research essay so you should use 5-10 sources in addition to
the textbooks. Include at least one reference to the textbook.

Your essay MUST have the following explicit headings:

1. The issue. State the question you are trying
to answer concerning the similarities and differences among machines, humans, and animals.

2. Alternatives. State possible answers to
your question.

3. Evidence. Describe whatever evidence is relevant to the different
potential answers.

4. Conclusion. On the basis of the evidence
for the different alernatives, argue for what you see as the best
answer to the question.

Essays not using these headings will be PENALIZED
25%.

Essay Topics: pick one from A, B, or C

A. Compare intelligence in machines, humans, and other animals with respect to one of the following topics. Feel free to narrow the topic down to some more specific issue, and to consider specific machines, animals, and human capacities.

You must pick a completely different topic from your first essay - I've kept track. For example, if you wrote on one kind of imagery, you can't write on another kind of imagery.

Perception

Imagery

Problem solving

Learning

Analogy

Emotion

Consciousness

Action

Language

Creativity

The self

How to narrow down the topic

After choosing one of the 11 topics, you can narrow it down to particular aspects and entitites (human, computer, animal).

For example, you could narrow perception down to sound, the computer down to SIRI, and the animal down to dogs.

Imagery could be narrowed down to visual, auditory, etc.

Learning could be narrowed down to supervised or unsupervised, or to teaching.

Analogy could be narrowed down to intelligence test type analogies (A is to B as C is to what?).

Emotion could be narrowed down to empathy.

Etc.

How to translate the topic into an essay with the issue-alternatives-evidence structure.

Once you pick the aspect and entitities, the issue becomes: How similar and different are the entities with respect to the aspect?

Alternatives could include :

a. The entities have basically the same capacities for the aspect.

b. Humans are much better than the computer or the animal.

c. Humans, computers, and animals are all good, but use different processing.

d. Etc. The crucial part is to assemble evidence and argue for the alternative that is best supported by it.

B. Discuss one of the following ethical issues.

1. Should human-level or superior artificial intelligence be allowed to develop? Using what you have learned about human intelligence, discuss the feasibility of the development of equal or better AI. If superintelligent machines are a threat to humans, how might they be prevented? Evaluate Bostrom (on reserve).

2. What are the implications of the theories of intelligence discussed in this course for the question of ethical obligations toward non-human animals? Take into pain, suffering, emotions, and consciousness.

C. Propose your own topic. Submit a proposal (maximum 1-page) in class by Mar. 12 indicating the question you want to answer and a few relevant sources.

William Safire's rules for good writing:

No sentence fragments. Avoid run-on sentences they are hard
to read. A writer must not shift your point of view. Reserve the apostrophe
for it's proper use and omit it when its not needed. Write all adverbial forms
correct. In their writing, everyone should make sure that their pronouns agree
with its antecedent. Use the semicolon properly, use it between complete but
related thoughts; and not between an independent clause and a mere phrase. Don't
use no double negatives. Also, avoid awkward or affected alliteration. If I've
told you once, I've told you a thousand times: Resist hyperbole. If any word
is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is. Avoid commas, that
are not necessary. Verbs has to agree with their subjects. Avoid trendy locutions
that sound flaky. And don't start a sentence with a conjunction. The passive
voice should never be used. Writing carefully, dangling participles should be
avoided. Unless you are quoting other people's exclamations, kill all exclamation
points!!! Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do. Proofread carefully
to see if you any words out. Use parallel structure when you write and in speaking.
You should just avoid confusing readers with misplaced modifiers. Place pronouns
as close as possible, especially in long sentences-such as those of ten or more
words-to their antecedents. Eschew dialect, irregardless. Remember to never
split an infinitive. Take the bull by the hand and don't mix metaphors. Don't
verb nouns. Always pick on the correct idiom. Never, ever use repetitive redundancies.
"Avoid overuse of 'quotation "marks."'" Never use prepositions
to end a sentence with. Last but not least, avoid clichés like the plague.